What is the deal with latex gloves?

topher89

WKR
Joined
Oct 27, 2012
Messages
815
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Colorado
Clean hands, clean meat and protection from infection.

Same reasons I have a nice backpack, nice boots and good gear. Why inconvenience myself when I can use the gloves?
 

ElkNut1

WKR
Joined
Feb 25, 2012
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2,395
Location
Idaho
Never have & most likely never will use them. I've broken down over 200 deer & elk without them with cuts/split fingers on my hands & no issues, I don't use trekking poles either, maybe when I get older! (grin)

ElkNut/Paul
 

jmez

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Joined
Jun 12, 2012
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Piedmont, SD
I'm a veterinarian.

Getting treated, as in the article you posted, is talking about people that would be know exposed in a chemical attack. You open a package that contains white powder. You would be put on antibiotics immediately prophylactically, (on the suspicion that you had been exposed). You get it from an animal, you aren't going to get treated, you will die.

Latex gloves will not offer any protection if you were to open an animal that had anthrax. You will inhale the spores and die.
 
Joined
Mar 15, 2017
Messages
867
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PA
I don't wear them while dressing deer but wouldn't see a problem with trying. I'm not concerned about getting a little dirty, that why I hunt and spend time in the woods.

A buddy stopped by to help me dress a deer earlier this season and pulled out his elbow length glove to put the heart in. It made a cleaner transfer which I was happy about.

If I was out in the mountains and wasn't going to be camping near a water source I would probably want to stay as clean as possible.
 

zacattack

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Joined
Aug 23, 2018
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1,332
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Michigan
I'm a veterinarian.

Getting treated, as in the article you posted, is talking about people that would be know exposed in a chemical attack. You open a package that contains white powder. You would be put on antibiotics immediately prophylactically, (on the suspicion that you had been exposed). You get it from an animal, you aren't going to get treated, you will die.

Latex gloves will not offer any protection if you were to open an animal that had anthrax. You will inhale the spores and die.

Where are you getting you information from? So much of what you are saying is just flat out wrong.
 

Rthur

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Jun 8, 2016
Messages
236
Have done field dressings without gloves.
Became a convenience for easy cleanup post work.
Carried some in my pack in a few states.
Never been able to tell the difference in weight.

R
 
Joined
Aug 4, 2012
Messages
495
I'm a veterinarian.

I am as well which is why I linked to the AVMA source.

I’ve had my hands in and on more animals- live and dead- than most people will see in their lifetime.

I realize the diseases on the list are rare and many are vector borne, but even then, handling carcasses has some risk of exposure.

My biggest concern are the enteric pathogens like E. coli, Salmonella, and Campylobacter. I don’t want those on my hands while I’m in the woods if I can avoid it. Even the gutless method doesn’t completely prevent exposure.

I could take my chances and save some weight by not boiling or filtering my drinking water as well, but the risk isn’t worth it to me.

Not a big deal if I’m packing out one animal and then heading back to town, but it could be a problem in a situation like this year where my brother and I killed 3 animals over 6 days and couldn’t wash our hands properly in between. That’s a lot of eating with my dirty hands and risking ingesting something from the kill.

Are you likely to get sick or die from field dressing without gloves? Probably not. Does wearing gloves reduce the risk that exists? Yes. Is it worth carrying them and using them? Your decision, but it’s worth it to me.

But for crying out loud- don’t leave them or any other trash- in the field!


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sneaky

"DADDY"
Joined
Feb 1, 2014
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ID
I'm a veterinarian.

Getting treated, as in the article you posted, is talking about people that would be know exposed in a chemical attack. You open a package that contains white powder. You would be put on antibiotics immediately prophylactically, (on the suspicion that you had been exposed). You get it from an animal, you aren't going to get treated, you will die.

Latex gloves will not offer any protection if you were to open an animal that had anthrax. You will inhale the spores and die.
For those of us who've had the full series of anthrax shots we would live...a few more minutes than everyone else lol

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Haney

FNG
Joined
Jul 17, 2020
Messages
53
I once worked in the woods with a guy that did not use toilet paper , he stunk . To each their own I guess , who am I to judge ?
 
Joined
Jul 30, 2019
Messages
820
“Latex” gloves are dang near obsolete, especially in the medical industry. Too many allergic reactions has pushed manufacturers to all “NON-Latex” materials. As stated above, most are Nitrile gloves. I have used them from day one and will continue to do so. There is likely nothing that weights less in your pack than a pair of nitrile gloves so that’s a mute argument. I wear them simply for the ease of having Clean hands after I am done gutting my animal. If it adds some added protection from enteric pathogens that’s an added bonus. Simply pull one glove off and use the other to pull off over the top of it. All sides of the bloody gloves are on the inside. I stuff them in a ziplock bag and put in my pack to pack out. Clean hands in the backcountry, especially when water is scarce and I don’t want to have to waste my drinking water to clean my hands, goes a LONG LONG way.
 
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rayporter

WKR
Joined
Jul 3, 2014
Messages
4,251
Location
arkansas or ohio
i will admit to using nitrile gloves in recent years. for me it has nothing to do with getting my hands bloody as i did that for years and years.

my hands and fingers will crack and bleed on long camping trips. especially after getting blood on them.

the rubber gloves have helped a lot.
 

Scoony

Lil-Rokslider
Joined
Oct 5, 2017
Messages
263
Location
Ky
I learned when doing automotive work, wearing gloves makes cleaning hands afterwards easy. Same applies to field dressing and animal. I bring gloves when hunting. I am not too worried about catching anything, just when I take off the gloves, my hands are clean, easy peasy. Just have to clean up my wrists.
Why is this so hard to understand for folks?
 

stonewall

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Joined
Jul 29, 2016
Messages
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Location
TX - Texas
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I like to wear nitrile gloves for just about anything that might get my hands dirty. Wore them from the beginning of my hunting days as a kid (latex then). Wear them for my taxidermy hobby. Painting. Etc
 
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